Volkswagen took to the Geneva Motor Show to announce the launch of a new high-end luxury saloon for the Chinese market. The reason for that is, probably, if Volkswagen Phideon proves successful over there, it could stand a chance of getting a Euro career as well.

Built upon the new Modular Longitudinal Matrix (MLB), Volkswagen Phideon is a five-metre saloon that slots above the Passat in VW’s range, offering customers an interesting alternative to cars like the Mercedes E-Class and BMW 5 Series. The design of the car is inspired by the C Coupe GTE concept car, and it’s named after the Fides, the Roman goddess of fidelity – something VW is apparently only just learning to practice!

Engine-wise, Volkswagen Phideon launches with a 300 PS and 440 Nm 3.0 litre V6 turbocharged direct injection petrol engine in the range-topping 3.0 TSI 4MOTION with standard four-wheel-drive. There is also a 2.0 TSI four-cylinder model with front-wheel drive and a plug-in hybrid variant to be launched in the near future. The car’s also fully-loaded with features such as features such as a head-up display a camera-based night vision system, Area View with four cameras, ACC (adaptive cruise control), Front Assist (surroundings monitoring system), Park Assist, and…

Despite all that one gets the feeling VW is putting a lot more emphasis on design rather the technicalities with the Phideon. They keep talking about the new “face” of the car with its elegant details. A shrink would probably link this to the dieselgate debacle and VW’s desire to put on a new image.